Soap cake



y 1957 B. .1. LE VIER ET AL 2,792,349

SOAP CAKE Filed March 26, 1954 INVENTORS MISCH KOHN BiLL J. LE VIE)? BY GENE ATT s B. J. LE VlER ET AL 2,792,349

SOAP CAKE May 14, 1957 Filed March 26, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS MISCH KOHN BILL J. LE VIED MKM YAA HTTORNEYS SOAP CAKE mu ll. Le Vier, Pasadena, Calif., and Misch Kohn, Chicago, Ill., assignors to Lever Brothers Company, l ew York, N. Y., a corporation of Maine Application March 26, 1954, Serial No. 420,766

2 Claims. (Cl. 252-134) This invention relates to soap cakes and more particularly to soap cakes having shapes for facilitating etficiency in handling, wear and storage.

Important characteristics to be regarded in the design of soap cakes are the ability of the soap cake to be conveniently manipulated, to wear uniformly, to have minimum contact with flat supporting surfaces when not in use, and to have maximum contact with the surfaces of the hands when in use.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide new and improved configurations for soap cakes whereby the foregoing characteristics are attained.

The invention may be embodied in a cake of soap having both of its side or major surfaces rounded convexly, with at least one of these surfaces being relatively sharply rounded in one direction only. In a preferred form the respective major surfaces are both rounded or curved predominantly in only one direction with the curvature being effected in mutually perpendicular directions so that the cake may be clasped comfortably in the hands while the latter are in washing attitude. Thus the curvature of the lower surface conforms closely to the natural curvature of the lower hand and the curvature of the upper surface conforms closely to the natural curvature of the upper hand.

The invention may be better understood by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in perspective showing how the one form of a soap cake of the present invention is used;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the cake of soap of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the cake of soap looking in the direction of the arrows 33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an end elevation of the cake of soap looking in the direction of the arrows 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a bottom plan view of the cake of soap;

Figure 6 is a view in perspective showing how a cake of soap of modified form is used;

Figure 7 is a top plan view of the cake of soap of Figure 6;

Figure 8 is a side elevation of the cake of soap of Figure 7;

Figure 9 is an end elevation of the cake of soap of Figure 7; and

Figure 10 is a bottom plan view of the cake of soap of Figure 7.

Referring first to Figures 1 through 5, inclusive, the invention is illustrated as embodied in a cake of soap 10, round in plan view, bounded by an edge 11 and having major or side surfaces 12 and 13 comprising upper and lower surfaces, respectively, as viewed in the drawing.

The upper surface 12 is convex, being curved or rounded predominantly in a single direction about a first horizontal axis, and the lower surface 13 is likewise convex, being curved or rounded predominantly in a single direction about a second horizontal axis substantially normal to that of the upper surface 12 and disposed at the opposite tt s .Pa ice A Patented May 14, 1957 side of the soap cake. As best seen in Figure 1, the cylindrical edge 11 is of substantially uniform depth and follows a rising or falling pattern about the cake caused by the curvature of the upper and lower surfaces in mutually perpendicular directions and by the generally round shape of the cake.

It will be seen that this configuration for the soap cake 10 permits it to be received, as shown in Figure 1, in the left hand, palm up and with the fingers and palm following curvature of the lower surface 13, this being a more or less natural curvature for the hand. The upper surface may be clasped by the right hand, palm down, with the fingers aligned with its direction of curvature. The two hands are then disposed for movement over the oppositely curved surfaces of the cake in mutually perpendicular directions in accordance with conventional washing or soaping practice. Due to the unconventional major surface contours, there is relatively little tendency for the soap cake to slip out of the hands, and good surface contact obtains at all points.

Because the cake of soap complies with the contours of a pair of hands which clasp it the tendency is for the cake of soap to wear uniformly and to preserve its original contours. Also, because each of the surfaces of the soap cake is curved relatively sharply, line contact is established with supporting surfaces, such as aflforded by soap trays, and softening or dissolving by residual water will tend to be minimized. Both surfaces being curved alike, the cake can be put down on either face.

Referring to Figures 6 through 10, inclusive, a cake of soap 14 is illustrated which is substantially elliptical in plan view, bounded by an edge 15, and having upper and lower side or major surfaces 16 and 17, respectively, as viewed in the drawing. The lower surface 16 is convex, being rounded or curved predominantly in a single direction about an axis parallel to the major axis of the ellipse. The upper surface 17 is also convex, being rounded or curved predominantly about an axis which is parallel to the minor axis of the ellipse, and disposed on the opposite side of the cake from the axis of curvature of the lower surface 16. The upper surface 17 is also rounded or curved about an axis which is parallel to the major axis of the ellipse and which is also disposed on the opposite side of the cake from the axis of curvature of the lower surface 16. The rounding, however, is less radical than that in the other directions.

The soap cake 14 may be grasped in the hands with the left hand, palm up, conforming to the lower surface 16 and the right hand, palm down, overlying the upper surface 17. As in the case of the cake of soap shown in Figures 1 through 5, this cake of soap will have little tendency to slip out of the hands and, because it tends to conform to the natural contours of the hands, will wear evenly.

The particular forms of the invention here described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings are presented as examples of how the invention may be applied. Thus the shape of the soap cake in plan view may take other forms so as to present either a uniformly curving edge as in the round cake of Figures 1 through 5, or nonuniformly curving edge as in Figures 6 through 10. It will be understood that if the shape of the cake in plan view is out-of-round, the depth of the edge will tend to vary about the periphery of the cake, assuming the radii of curvature for both sides are about the same. Other forms of the invention coming within the proper scope of the appended claims will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

We claim:

1. A cake of soap comprising convex upper and lower surfaces, one of which is uniformly convexly rounded in one direction only and about an axis parallel to the general plane of the cake, said surface thereby constituting a portion of a cylindrical surface, and the other surface of which is uniformly convexly rounded about at least one axis parallel to'the general plane of the cake,csaid axis being substantially at right angles to the axis about which said one surface is rounded.

2. A cake of soap comprising an edge portion which is curved continuously and convex upper and lower surfaces, one of which is uniformly convexly rounded in one direction only and about an axis parallel to the general plane of the cake, said surface thereby constituting a portion of a cylindrical surface, and the other surface of which is uniformly convexly rounded about at 4 least one axis parallel to the general plane of the cake, said axis being substantially at right angles to the axis about which said one surface is rounded.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 67,509 Durstine June 9, 1925 268,321 Van Haagen Nov. 28, 1882 10 2,110,916 Peckham Mar. 15, 1938 2,420,734 Churchill May 20, 1947 2,489,639 Haskell Nov. 29, 1949 2,508,578 Marshall May 23, 1950 

1. A CAKE OF SOAP COMPRISING CONVEX UPPER AND LOWER SURFACES, ONE OF WHICH IS UNIFORMLY CONVEXLY ROUNDED IN ONE DIRECTION ONLY AND ABOUT AN AXIS PARALLEL TO THE GENERAL PLANE OF THE CAKE, SAID SURFACE THEREBY CONSTITUTING A PORTION OF A CYCLINDRICAL SURFACE, AND THE OTHER SURFACE OF WHICH IS UNIFORMLY CONVEXLY ROUNDED ABOUT AT LEAST ONE AXIS PARALLEL TO THE GENERAL PLANE OF THE CAKE, SAID AXIS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY AT RIGHT ANGLES TO THE AXIS ABOUT WHICH SAID ONE SURFACE IS ROUNDED. 